House of the Rising Sun
by moonswirl
Summary: Gleekathon, day four hundred:  2/2  Rachel comes to Quinn's rescue at the dinner and then...


_Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 18th cycle. Now cycle 19!_

**DAY 400!  
**As usual, a little treat for you guys... Just go to: pics [dot] livejournal [dot] com [slash] mooners [slash] pic [slash] 003zde5f (hope that works!)

**TV Tiles Cycle **- So this is Cycle 20! I wanted to do something special, so here we are! Some of you may remember a while back me asking for episode titles from tv shows. I've always found that a lot of shows have great episode titles, so this is how this cycle came to be. Each story will be inspired and titled after an episode from a different show. The influence of the episode may vary from story to story, not seeking to rely completely on it ;) You'll see...  
**Today's Show/Title:** "Lost" - _House of the Rising Sun_

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**"House of the Rising Sun"  
Rachel & Quinn  
Sunshine Girls #20  
Part 2 of "Til Sunbeams Find You"**

If the 'joys of motherhood' weren't messing with her system as it was, this dinner was trying very hard to just shove her over the edge. There was the mess with her father, which already brought her so much anger, but then Finn… She didn't know what was going through his mind but she didn't like the feeling she got. She would have preferred not to call in the favor, but the alternative was too frightening. So as they were about to move from the living room to take their places at the table, she pulled out her phone and let her fingers fly over the keys, hitting send and slipping it back in her pocket before anyone noticed. Now she just had to hope Rachel was as quick as she believed her to be.

They were being served the main course when the doorbell rang; Quinn let out a breath before she realized it. The other three, naturally clueless, looked up in surprise. Her mother clicked back into hostess gear and excused herself to go answer. Quinn threw a quick little smile to Finn and her father before pretending to take a drink of water to cover the smirk she got at hearing her mother react. A moment later, a smiling Judy escorted Rachel into the dining room. The men both reacted differently. Finn looked to Quinn, mouthing 'what's going on?' Quinn waved for him not to talk… She'd deal with him shortly.

"Rachel Berry, well this is a sight!" Russell Fabray got up to go and greet the girl. "It's been… a few years, but I still recognize that smile," he pointed before a quick hug hello.

"It's certainly a… surprise," Judy nodded, looking around. Rachel looked to Quinn, who gave a quick 'thanks' nod.

"I'm sorry to drop in unannounced like this, it's just Quinn and I accidentally got each other's history books, and we have an assignment so I need… m-my notes, in my book," she managed.

"Right, it's in my room, follow me," Quinn got up to lead Rachel away, but then the new arrival cleared her throat and jerked her head ever so subtly for her to look back at the table; she'd be leaving Finn there, alone, with her parents. She looked back to Rachel as though to say 'yeah, good call.' "Uh, Finn, you can come, too."

"You kids behave," Russell chuckled as Finn got up to follow the girls.

"Of course, Dad," Quinn gave a sharp nod before leading Finn and Rachel up toward her room. "Good thing he didn't check that…" she whispered, until she saw Rachel pull the book from her bag and realized, "That is my book."

"I may have swapped them earlier," Rachel spoke innocently, and Quinn smirked. Rachel looked around as they headed up… It was still so weird, being back here, remembering when they were little…

"Uh, guys?" The girls stopped climbing the stairs and both turned to look at Finn, still behind them. "What's going on?" he asked. Quinn wasn't sure how to answer, but Rachel stepped in at that; it was better to pull the plug.

"Here," she handed Quinn her history book before leading Finn back down toward the door, speaking as they went. Quinn watched from atop the stairs, unsure what Rachel was up to. She couldn't hear what was being said, but then Finn waved up to her with a smile. She waved back, watching him walk out. Rachel climbed back up to Quinn.

"What'd you say to him?" Quinn asked, curious.

"Doesn't matter, everything's fine," Rachel promised her.

"Well what about my parents? My father invited him," she reminded.

"That's why you've got 'childhood friend they haven't seen in a while' to divert their attention," she pointed out, complete with air quotes. "They'll forget about Finn; just say his mother called him home," Rachel suggested. "Also, we should hurry and switch books before they come looking for us," she whispered. Quinn blinked.

"Right…" she continued up to her room, with Rachel in tow. "I don't think I need to remind you to be careful not to mention you-know-what…"

"Yeah, consider it unspoken." They switched out the books before returning to the dining room. They stopped just inside the doorway, expecting the obvious question.

"Where's Finn?" Judy asked.

"His mother called; he had to go," Quinn explained with a nod.

"Well that'll be a relief; the boy looked ready to bury his head in a sandpit," Russell raised his glass to his wife before taking a sip.

"He was doing fine," Quinn glared, trying to maintain a smile.

"He's great," Rachel spoke at the same time and they stopped. The Finn issue was still one they chose to ignore.

"Well, you know what they say about closed doors; this may be our open window. Rachel, why don't you join us," Russell indicated the seat left empty by Finn. Rachel threw Quinn a look and got a nod.

"Thank you, Mr. Fabray, I would love to," she turned back with a polite smile.

"Just leave the ham, it's fine," Quinn mumbled to Rachel before they went to take their seats.

"So Rachel, how are your… your fathers?" Russell asked, cautious. Quinn closed her eyes, but Rachel soldiered on.

"They're well, thank you for asking."

"One day we will have to invite them for dinner," Judy pitched in, getting herself a look from her husband.

"Yes, we definitely should," Quinn chimed in, barely containing her need to get at her father. Seeing this, Rachel once again opted for damage control.

"Glee Club!" she burst, gathering the attention of the three Fabrays. Quinn got the hint, cooling off. "It's just, it's fun, we're… having fun, just… loads…" she took a drink of water to just shut herself up. Quinn squeezed her lips together to keep from talking… or laughing.

"So it seems…" Russell looked at their guest, confused and amused. "And what are you all working on at the moment?"

"Ballads," Rachel started. "It's all about expressing in song the things we can't say," she explained.

"That's very good. There's just no point in keeping these things in. Most of the time you simply cannot keep it secret; you can just tell," he bowed his head to Judy, who practically blushed. Quinn's cheeks were also red, though for different emotions.

"Is that right?" she wouldn't even look at her father.

"Quinn…" Rachel whispered, shaking her head. The blonde bowed her head, but they both knew it wasn't going to end there. Rachel had half a mind to excuse herself from the table, but then the whole reason for her being there was to support Quinn. And maybe they hadn't said it in so many words, but to a degree they'd known something like this would risk coming to pass. In that case, she definitely needed her. She would be there, as budding re-friendship or not… Quinn looked back up and Rachel communicated this with a nod.

"Quinn, what's gotten into you?" her mother asked. She couldn't say it, couldn't make the words come out. It was something to want to confront her father, but doing it in front of her mother who didn't have any idea and would be completely blindsided by the whole thing, now that was another. Her eyes looked just on the verge of welling up. She didn't want to be the messenger, didn't want to have to be… Rachel's eyes were drawn to the side, and there she saw Mrs. Fabray. It wasn't just her face, it was her whole posture… Like she not only knew there was a revelation coming, she knew what the revelation was. Only it wasn't her husband she was directing this look at; it was her daughter. And then Rachel understood… Judy Fabray knew her daughter was pregnant, and this was the bombshell she was bracing for.

"I-It's nothing, Mom," Quinn managed. She was desperately trying to pull her emotions back in, like carrying something fragile… Any disruption, slightest… and it would crash…

"Oh, this reminds me, Judy, I won't be able to attend that dinner next Saturday," Russell suddenly spoke up. "Something's come up, I'm afraid." Rachel didn't have to look; she had a pretty good idea what Quinn's face looked like, right about then.

"We've been planning it for weeks…" Judy blinked as she redirected her mind from her daughter to her husband, slipping into disappointment, all the while trying to maintain herself as hostess.

"I know you have, but there's nothing I can do; they'll be expecting me," Russell just shrugged.

"Where, at the mall?" Quinn's voice sounded, and Rachel looked at her, sitting up… There they were, going forward. Quinn looked up to her father, no emotion in her eyes, her face… Russell looked back at her, but if her words had caused any reaction at all he wasn't showing it in any way. "Where are you going, Dad?" she dared.

"Russell?" Judy asked, but he was staring back at Quinn.

"We saw you," her voice was low. "We saw you with her," she went on; he still kept up his front. "Just say it. Do the right thing," she begged. "Don't make me do it." He didn't move. "Dad, say it," she raised her voice. "Say it," her voice trembled with tears, but he continued to stonewall her. "You're a bastard…" she dared him not to speak to her again.

"Quinn!" her mother reacted immediately. "He's your father!"

"You can't speak to me that way," he finally broke his silence.

"Yes, actually, I can. It might bother me if I still had respect for you, but I don't," Quinn cried on. "I gave you a chance but you didn't take it… So I have no choice, because I am not going to keep letting you live this lie right under our noses!"

"What lie, what are you…" Judy blinked.

"He's cheating on you, Mom," Quinn spoke, still staring at her father. "He's cheating on you, we saw him." Judy looked to her husband, waiting for him to deny it.

"I don't know what you think you…" Russell tried to stick to his guns.

"We have you on video," Quinn played her ace in the hole. There was that moment, a break… They had him. "Say it or we'll show her." It finally dawned on him that she kept saying 'we' and he looked to Rachel; she wanted to look away, but out of solidarity, she gave him the same look of defiance Quinn did. "Rachel?" she signaled, so Rachel took out her phone and cued up the video, passing it to Judy. The woman looked to the object, to her husband, and then took it.

"So, is this what you've been doing with your time, now that you've quit the Cheerios, you just go around and…"

"Get out…" Everyone stopped at once and the three turned to look at the source: Judy. Quinn breathed in, thinking she was speaking to her. "Not you, you stay right here, Sweetheart," her voice briefly sweetened as she reached out to touch her daughter's hand. A moment later though, her voice and pointed finger both filled with venom and she turned on her husband and stood. "Get out. I'm small, but I'll get you out there," her eyebrow raised. There wasn't a sound in the room as the Fabrays faced off. The girls were watching, hearts beating rapidly… They had not seen this coming.

"I don't think you…" Russell remained.

"Get out! Now! This is my house, in case you've forgotten. It was my mother's house, it's mine now, and if Quinn wants it someday then it will be hers. Now get out of our house. You're not welcome here." The napkin was slammed on the table, Russell Fabray admitting – temporary – defeat. Quinn watched him go, crying in silence. As the door slammed, she shuddered for a breath. She felt a hand on her shoulder and thought for a beat that it was her mother… It was Rachel. She'd been crying, too. Quinn managed a thankful smile before looking back to her mother.

"Mom, I…" she watched her mother sit back down. "I'm sorry, I…"

"You know, for a moment there I thought you were going to tell us about the baby…" Judy spoke evenly. Quinn didn't know how to respond. She thought her mother might have known, but she didn't know for sure until then.

"I'm so…" she started again, but her mother stood and came to gather her up in her arms.

"Don't… It's going to be alright," she pulled back, inciting her daughter to smile with her as she wiped her tears away. "It's going to need some… some thinking, but we'll find our way, the two of us," she grasped her hands and Quinn nodded. "I… I need to go lie down, if you'll excuse me. Rachel, it was lovely to see you again, you come back, okay?"

"I will, Mrs. Fabray." Judy gave a short nod and went on upstairs. Now alone, Quinn's hand went to her mouth, more tears coming as what had just happened really started to sink in. Rachel put her arm around her shoulders. "Maybe you should sit…"

"I'm okay," Quinn insisted.

"No, you're not," Rachel pointed out, just as Quinn sniffled.

"It needed to happen, I guess, I… I'm really glad you were here," she nodded.

"Of course… What are… ex-Sunshine Girls for, you know?" Quinn laughed.

"I don't know about 'ex,'" she gave Rachel a nod.

"Right, well… New Sunshine Girls, with a twist," she smirked.

"With a twist," Quinn agreed.

"I can stay if you need me…" Quinn shook her head, thankful. "How about you go look after your mom, and… I'll take care of this," she indicated the dining room table, figuring they wouldn't exactly be in the mood. There was a beat, and then…

Quinn hugged her, a real proper 'I am so glad you're in my life' kind of hug. It startled Rachel at first, but then she smiled and returned it. With one last look, Quinn went on upstairs, and Rachel got to cleaning. It was going to be a brand new day after this… For all of them.

THE END

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A/N: Sorry it took so long, today's been hell and the story was huge... Fun fact though, it was completed and typed and posted in room H-400 of my uni! ;)

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**[A/N: This is a one-shot ficlet, story alert won't get you anything! ;)]**


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